Locals turn to Kickstarter to launch projects

Crowd-funding jumps local enterprises into reality

The National Ranching Heritage Center's first outdoor art installation "Unwanted Visitor: Portrait of Wildfire," opened Oct. 7. The work of internationally known sculptor Herb Williams of Nashville, Tenn. Williams used Crayola crayons to create multiple freestanding, 3-D sculptures representing wildfires that are currently melting and changing in the Texas weather conditions.

The National Ranching Heritage Center's first outdoor art installation "Unwanted Visitor: Portrait of Wildfire," opened Oct. 7. The work of internationally known sculptor Herb Williams of Nashville, Tenn. Williams used Crayola crayons to create multiple freestanding, 3-D sculptures representing wildfires that are currently melting and changing in the Texas weather conditions.

The National Ranching Heritage Center's first outdoor art installation "Unwanted Visitor: Portrait of Wildfire," opened Oct. 7. The work is of internationally known sculptor Herb Williams of Nashville, Tenn. Williams used Crayola crayons to create multiple freestanding, 3-D sculptures (below) representing wildfires melting and changing in the Texas weather conditions.

Artists seeking money for their projects may go to the crowd through Kickstarter.

Scott Faris, local musician and owner of FarisWheel Productions and the Amusement Park Recording Studio, used the site to fund a live performance to replace the original soundtrack of a silent movie, Metropolis, produced in the 1920s.

The movie, made in Germany, is set in the dystopian future and is about the rebellion of an oppressed class against their ruling elite.

“I think Kickstarter is revolutionary,” Faris said. “It allows artists to have a chance at funding they normally wouldn’t have.”

Here’s how it works: Artists logon to Kickstarter and profile their projects with a set monetary goal they want to achieve. Funders on the site are not investors, in the sense they do not own a percentage of the final product or receive a percentage of profits from the project.

For example, the project for Metropolis rewarded $10 donors with a custom printed thank you card. One of the rewards listed at the $100 level is a limited edition screen print of the Metropolis Elektro poster.

Faris called Kickstarter a great platform for artists. Funding the project with Kickstarter also allowed the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center to test the waters of crowd-funding.

“It ended up being very successful for us,” Faris said.

The project Faris is creating raised $5,300 from 46 donors. The money will be used to pay live musicians.

Metropolis will be a part of the Flatland Film Festival on March 22-23 at the Firehouse Theater.

Another local Kickstarter project was done by one of Faris’ former students, Zach Balch.

“He is an amazing musician,” Faris said.

Balch used the site to fund a full-length album.

“We set out to do something better than we’ve ever done before,” Balch said.

In the first day Balch raised $3,000, but funds dropped off until the last few days donors had to pledge. In the last few days $2,000 was raised to complete funding. With Kickstarter’s model, getting complete funding is important because even if the project is only $1 short, it will not be funded.

“People want to wait until the last minute so they can feel like the hero,” Balch said.

The Lubbock native now lives in Dallas, but he returned home to produce his album at Amusement Park Studios.

For future projects, Balch said he would consider using the site to raise funds again.

“They were fantastic,” Balch said. “I love the look and the feel. It was easy for someone like me who wasn’t tech savvy.”

Another local project funded by Kickstarter was an art exhibit at the Texas Tech National Ranching Heritage Center. The center raised $2,500 to support a sculpture by Herb Williams made out of crayons meant to invoke the energy of wildfires.

Justin Kazmark, a spokesperson for Kickstarter, called the site a platform for funding great projects.

Kazmark explained pledges are not charged until the last day of the projects time period on Kickstarter. Creators have the choice to select any number of days between one and 60. Once the time period has elapsed all the credit cards are charged at the same time and the funds are transferred to the artist.

And the all or nothing policy, Kazmark explained, helps both the funder and the artists.

“I know my credit card will only be charged if the project has the budget to make it work,” Kazmark said.

And it helps artists because they don’t have to worry about getting stuck having to create a promised project without enough funds. In addition, Kazmark said donors are emotionally invested in the projects.

Since it launched in 2009 Kickstarter has helped raise more than $477 million and supported more than 35,000 projects.

“It is an inspirational platform,” Kazmark said. “You can really create on your own terms.”